McLaren will only build 106 examples of its three-seater “Hyper-GT”.
Meet the ultimate McLaren road car – at least by the company’s own claim. The McLaren Speedtail takes a teardrop-shaped, carbon fiber body and marries it to McLaren’s most powerful hybrid powertrain to date. The result? A whirlpool of mind-bending numbers. 1,035 horsepower is responsible for catapulting the Speedtail to 186 mph in 12.8 seconds. Its top speed, according to McLaren, is pegged at 250 mph, and it weights just over 3,000 pounds dry. Thanks to the carbon fiber structor and active chassis control lowering the Speedtail 1.4 inches, aerodynamics is on the car’s side as it runs toward its top speed.
That’s not all, however. McLaren will limit production to just 106 units. If you want one, you’ll face two major issues. One is the last mind-bending number: the McLaren Speedtail has an eye-watering £1.75 million ($2.25 million) price tag. Plus taxes. The other slight problem is that you can’t have one. No, seriously – even if you can afford it, all 106 examples are already spoken for.
Mind you, McLaren’s first “Hyper-GT” car packs plenty of technology, including plenty of carbon fiber, to justify that asking price. The body is carbon fiber. the front-wheel aero-covers are carbon fiber. The driver’s seat is carbon fiber. Then there’s the Speedtail name and McLaren badge are formed in 18-carat white gold. On the technology front, there are two active ailerons to give the car more downforce when it’s needed. Pirelli also developed bespoke P-Zero tires specifically for this car.
Heir to McLaren’s Throne
In several ways, it pays homage to the original, 243 mph McLaren F1. That also had a three-seat layout, mind-boggling top speed and a heart-breaking price tag. When it launched in 1994, the McLaren F1 set its owners back $815,000 – or $1.4 million in today’s money.
While all 106 McLaren Speedtail models are sold out, deliveries of this barely street-legal hypercar won’t take place until 2020. The Speedtail is the first of 18 new cars McLaren will launch by 2025 under its Track25 business plan.
